I don't see it as settling at all. Just speaking for me—I know I can't, let's be silly for a moment, attract a super model. Or a theoretical physicist with 4 phds, etc. Now I can still make a go of it and try, the same way I could try the lottery as a retirement savings plan.
I don't disagree that you can't help who you're attracted to. Believe me, I've been there, attracted—and not just surface stuff, I still think of her 30 years later—to someone who did not feel the same about me. It hurt. A lot. So I went where I was wanted. Of course people have the right to do what they need to do, if that includes remaining alone, etc.
What's too bad is the idea that this is about looks. It isn't. I know I said, above, "super model", and held that as an unattainable ideal. That is stupid—and really misguided. Number one, super models are selected for media fodder as a way to sell a completely arbitrary beauty ideal.
Second, I can't attract one—not because I'm ugly—but because I don't move in their monied circles. The real hierarchy, the one that (unfortunately) truly matters, is socio-economic status. We're I a major rock star—guess what, I'd have no worries, assuming I have some confidence and swagger. But I don't, and I'm not.
I realize any sort of positive outlook, well, you mention it at your own peril. Just realize anything I say or believe doesn't make the lightest damn bit of difference. My saying anything was ultimately pointless. If someone absolutely believes their thing comes down to being ugly—you then can't say anything useful. If you agree, you make things worse. Same result if you disagree.